Residents of Ogle and Lusignan, East Coast Demerara will soon benefit from improved sports facilities in the form of upgraded community grounds.
Following inspections of the Ogle Community Centre Ground on Thursday evening, Culture, Youth and Sports Minister, Charles Ramson, said the ground’s track will soon be completed.
“They have got to finish up doing the crusher run now. They have to put three inches there. So far, they have finished about 50 per cent or so, and that’s going to be completed within the next few days,” he said.
The minister assured that the track would be asphalted once that is completed.
He said the ministry has installed six floodlight lamp posts around the grounds while noting that the underground wiring, and installation of the lights would be completed in the coming weeks.
“So, you’re going to have fantastic lights, a fantastic track, and you’re also going to have some additional work to be done,” he said.
He encouraged residents to become involved in the enhancement and upkeep of the ground.
“The main thing is that you get your ground operational, and any kind of minor work along the way, we can get that done too. Our primary objective is to see the effective completion of the projects, but the second thing is to decide on what [project] to do with the additional money that we have,” the minister noted.
He committed to contributing gear for the Ogle cricket club when works on the ground are completed. Residents were urged to allocate a section of the ground for the construction of a volleyball court, in addition, to spaces for cricket and football.
Minister Ramson also suggested the installation of solar lights for the community ground, to avoid high electricity costs.
Regarding works being done on the Lusignan ground, the minister said the team from the Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry is currently rolling out a model being replicated across the country, to provide more modern facilities at sports grounds as Guyana continues its rapid development.
“For this ground mainly, the primary focus is the lights and the fixing of the fence. We have created a model that we have been replicating across the country, and we started that last year. We’ve just enhanced it a little now, with better, more efficient lights, but that’s the main feature that’s going to be here. The residents and the users believe this is going to make a big difference,” the minister said.
Members of the Lusignan Sports Club expressed approval of the upgrades outlined by the minister and committed to assisting with the enhancement of the ground.
“We’ve done the procurement, we’ve completed all that and they’re ready to start, but they were waiting for the final ‘go-ahead’. So, I wanted to have this final consultation with them to make sure that they were ready to go ahead with this project,” Minister Ramson explained.
The government remains committed to delivering quality resources for all Guyanese across sectors, as it forwards its ‘One Guyana’ agenda.
This agenda ensures all citizens, regardless of race, class, or gender enjoy similar amenities, quality products and services, and the wealth of resources from the country.